Minnesota Republicans Call Anti-Bullying Bill ’Fascism’

A week after the Minnesota State Senate approved an anti-bullying bill, the House also approved it, but not before local Republicans spent hours decrying it as "fascism" that could expose students to "filthy, perverted information."

"The Democrats want access into your private life," said Rep. Jim Newberger, a Republican from Becker, as reported Twin Cities.com reported. "If this isn’t a mirror image of ’1984,’ I don’t know what is. The only difference is George Orwell was off by 30 years."

The legislation is reportedly only 378 words, requiring school leaders to develop a comprehensive anti-bullying policy, train staff to prevent bullying and quickly investigate allegations.

The Safe and Supportive Minnesota Schools Act passed on a 69-63 vote in the House, and a 36-31 vote in the senate, with all Republicans voting against it. They spent hours arguing that the legislation itself amounted to bullying by the government, calling it "fascism."

House Republicans like Glenn Gruenhagen, a Republican from Glencoe, also expressed concerns that the legislation would expose students to "filthy, perverted information." Others complained that it would strip students of the constitutional rights -- ostensibly, the right to bully and intimidate fellow students, one presumes.

But Jim Davnie, DFL-Minneapolis, the chief sponsor of the measure in the House, said that "sexuality and health education is local control and not affected by this bill. There has been a lot of misinformation about this bill. The perception it deals with sexuality education is not correct."

Davnie added that the legislation is needed to ensure students felt safe at school, telling TwinCities.com, "We talk about this being about anti-bullying, and it is. It’s also about positioning Minnesota as a leader in the next generation of education reform," referring to the role safe schools play in academic achievement.

Others accused the local gay advocacy group OutFront Minnesota of stacking the deck and working toward "a social agenda," as a section of the legislation prevents bullying students for the sexual orientation or gender identity.

Eventually, the legislation passed. Joe.My.God. reports that Gov. Mark Dayton will sign the bill into law at 4 p.m. today, in a ceremony on the steps of the state Capitol.

Winnie McCroy is the Women on the EDGE Editor, HIV/Health Editor, and Assistant Entertainment Editor for EDGE Media Network, handling all women’s news, HIV health stories and theater reviews throughout the U.S. She has contributed to other publications, including The Village Voice, Gay City News, Chelsea Now and The Advocate, and lives in Brooklyn, New York, where she writes about local restaurants in her food blog, http://brooklyniscookin.blogspot.com/

Comments

Wayne Madden, 2014-04-11 21:35:50

What we have here is a case of right wing politicians who see nothing wrong with bullying in spite of the harm it causes to victims. Then they will turn around and pretend they support "law and order". The best way to stop bullying is to encourage understanding and care. This bill takes an essential step in that direction.

Jon Will, 2014-04-12 12:26:50

Someone should buy those Republicans a dictionary so they can learn the meaning of all those big words they’re misusing.

Add your comment here:

Comments on Facebook

Related Stories

The Supreme Court of Minnesota today upheld a lower court’s ruling that an HIV-positive man cannot be held criminally responsible for engaging in consensual sex after disclosing his HIV status to his partner.

The Massachusetts Senate has overwhelmingly approved a bill designed to build on the state’s 2010 anti-bullying law by strengthening protections for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender students and students with disabilities.

Forty gay couples in South Dakota applied to be married during the first month following a landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision that legalized such unions across the country, according to data provided by the state Department of Health.